John McCrostie

John McCrostie
Member of the Idaho House of Representatives from the 16A district
In office December 1, 2014 – November 30, 2022
Preceded by	Grant Burgoyne
Succeeded by	Soñia Galaviz
Personal details
Born	c. 1970 (age 54–55) Mountain Home, Idaho, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Dave Navarro
Residence(s)	Garden City, Idaho, U.S.
Website	www.mccrostie4idaho.com

John McCrostie is an American teacher and former Democratic politician who served as a member of the Idaho House of Representatives for four terms representing the 16A district.^[1] McCrostie was also the assistant minority leader of the House.^[2] He ran for a Garden City, Idaho city council seat in November 2021^[3] but was unsuccessful.

Early life and education

McCrostie grew up in Mountain Home, Idaho, and graduated from Mountain Home High School in 1988. He graduated magna cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in music education from Oral Roberts University.

Career

McCrostie taught music in Mountain Home and Boise, later starting work for Hewlett-Packard (HP) and providing title insurance. He also rose in the ranks of organized labor for the National Education Association and advocated for LGBT workers in the education sector and at HP.^{[4][self-published source]}

Elections

2014

In 2013, McCrostie announced his run in the Democratic primary for State House District 16A to succeed Grant Burgoyne, who ran for the district's open senate seat.

McCrostie won the May 2014 Democratic primary against former NFL player Jimmy Farris and Jeff Stephenson with 52.6% of the vote.^[5] McCrostie defeated Republican nominee Rosann Wiltse with 58.4% of the vote in the general election.^[6]

2016

McCrostie defeated Geoff Stephenson in the Democratic primary with 83.7% of the vote.^[7] McCrostie defeated Republican nominee Joel H. Robinson with 53.8% of the vote in the general election.^[8]

In October 2016, McCrostie faced criticism when he was recorded on a cell phone gathering up a challenger's campaign fliers while campaigning door-to-door in Boise. The campaign flyers came from Ryan McDonald, a Republican challenger to District 16 Sen. Grant Burgoyne. When confronted, McCrostie stated, "It's part of the game." Later, he issued a statement apologizing to family, friends, and supporters, saying he had "made a mistake" in taking the challenger's materials.^[9][10][11] McCrostie’s charge of misdemeanor petty theft was dismissed by Judge Thomas Watkins after he completed 30 hours of community service.^[12]

2018

McCrostie ran unopposed in the Democratic primary.^[13] McCrostie defeated Republican nominee and local Irrigation District Director Graham Paterson with 61.9% of the vote.^[14]

2020

McCrostie ran unopposed in the Democratic primary.^[15] McCrostie defeated Independent candidate (but affiliated with the Republican Party)^[16] Chandler S Hadraba with 98.1% of the vote.^[17]

2021

McCrostie ran for one of two seats on Garden City, Idaho city council.^[18][19] He ran as group with Hannah Ball for mayor and Greta Mohr for the other seat on city council.^[20] McCrostie was unsuccessful.

Personal life

McCrostie is the second openly-LGBT member in the history of the Idaho, after Nicole LeFavour, to have served in the Idaho Legislature.^[21]

References

1. "Election 2014: Lynn Luker narrowly holds off Democrat Steve Berch in Ada County". Idaho Statesman, November 5, 2014.
2. "Rep. John McCrostie – Idaho State Legislature". Retrieved 2021-08-22.
3. "All in for Garden City". All in for Garden City. Archived from the original on 2021-08-22. Retrieved 2021-08-22.
4. "Meet John". mccrostie4idaho.com. Retrieved 2017-04-03.
5. "Legislative Totals". sos.idaho.gov. Retrieved 2021-08-22.
6. "Legislative Totals". sos.idaho.gov. Retrieved 2021-08-22.
7. "Legislative Totals". sos.idaho.gov. Retrieved 2021-08-22.
8. "Legislative Totals". sos.idaho.gov. Retrieved 2021-08-22.
9. Prentice, George (26 Oct 2016). "Stolen Campaign Brochures: Disrespect, Dirty Tricks or Criminal Behavior?". Boise Weekly. Retrieved 27 October 2016.
10. Sowell, John (21 Oct 2016). "Idaho GOP candidate says Democratic lawmaker stole campaign fliers". Idaho Statesman. Retrieved 27 October 2016.
11. Boydston, Morgan (21 Oct 2016). "Idaho Dem accused of stealing GOP's campaign materials apologizes". KTVB. Retrieved 27 October 2016.
12. Sowell, John. “Garden City Legislator Who Stole Opponents' Campaign Brochures Avoids Trial.” Idaho Statesman, The (Boise, ID), 2017. America's News, infoweb.newsbank.com/apps/news/document-view?p=NewsBank&docref=news/1656E87076198C60. Accessed 22 Aug. 2021.
13. "Legislative Totals". sos.idaho.gov. Retrieved 2021-08-22.
14. "Legislative Totals". sos.idaho.gov. Retrieved 2021-08-22.
15. "Election Night Results".
16. "District 16 Republican Voter Guide". Retrieved 2021-08-22.
17. "2020 General Election Results – Legislative – Idaho Secretary of State".
18. "Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2021-08-22.
19. "Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2021-08-22.
20. "All in for Garden City". All in for Garden City. Archived from the original on 2021-08-22. Retrieved 2021-08-22.
21. "Idaho Representative John McCrostie Discusses Being A Gay Politician". Huffington Post. November 9, 2014. Retrieved 2014-11-10.

External links

• John McCrostie at the Idaho Legislature
• Campaign site
• Campaign site Archived 2021-08-22 at the Wayback Machine